Community Reviews

This overview walks where others tread slowly. It is a true overview that hits the highlights of when history meets philosophy, especially those times where it resulted in war. War that resulted in the American Revolution, war that resulted in the English Civil War and War that resulted in Napoleon's march across Europe.

Now Bronowski and Mazlich do not sit on the sidelines. They believe in freedom of speech and right to dissent. They, more than most modern historical writers, gives a perspectivThis overview walks where others tread slowly. It is a true overview that hits the highlights of when history meets philosophy, especially those times where it resulted in war. War that resulted in the American Revolution, war that resulted in the English Civil War and War that resulted in Napoleon's march across Europe.

Now Bronowski and Mazlich do not sit on the sidelines. They believe in freedom of speech and right to dissent. They, more than most modern historical writers, gives a perspective and does not apologize for it. They critique by asserting certain philosophies lead to tyranny. Hegel's love of Napoleaon leads to an intellectual movement that act as apologists for tyranny , Rousseau's beliefs in a rule by the "general will" with no constitutional rights leads to the French Revolution's "reign of terror" and Cromwell's "cruel necessity" causes a fight for freedom to become a military dictatorship.

Brownowski was born in Poland, moved to Germany and then ended up in the UK. Many of his relatives were killed in Nazi concentration camps. He worked developing bombing mathematics in the UK during WW II and was part of a group of scientists who studied the effects of the Atomic bomb in Japan. He did not sit on the sidelines of history but was an engaged intellectual.

This is a book for the ruled as much as the rulers. It will certainly make you think when the next news report of war or controversy crosses your vision. ...more

Most history books I have read are rather dry, this book is far from it. Bronowski gives the feel of a story book. He explains the historical figures' background so we get a feel for their personality and outlook, he also goes into detail about the time so that we get a good feel of the age and actually see it from their perspective. The writing is superb, you will fly through the 500 page book in no time.

A good overview of "the tradition" of Western thought. The authors present the thesis that Western thought is characterized by breaking from tradition, and this guides their presentation. The book does a nice job of providing overviews of various Western intellectual movements and showing how these periods are linked. I love the citations. The sourcing definitely give the reader the ability to explore topics that interest them, which is important for a work that focuses on breadth over depth. ThA good overview of "the tradition" of Western thought. The authors present the thesis that Western thought is characterized by breaking from tradition, and this guides their presentation. The book does a nice job of providing overviews of various Western intellectual movements and showing how these periods are linked. I love the citations. The sourcing definitely give the reader the ability to explore topics that interest them, which is important for a work that focuses on breadth over depth. The book has a very Keynesian, 60's "progressive" vibe to it. It is admittedly annoying how the authors brush aside Marxism with sweeping generalizations, and the section on Hegel was also pretty shoddy. This, however, is not surprising for a Cold War era book. The book is a 4/5- not for the critical nature of its analysis, but because it provides a strong springboard for further exploration of material that interests the reader.

Brilliant exposition of the intellectual history of the West from Leonardo to Hegel. Bronowski later did "The Ascent of Man" on PBS. Bronowski and Mazlish do a masterful job tracing the development of Western thought. Their conclusions on individualism and freedom are spot on. The book was published in 1962. They praise dissent as the highest form of freedom. How disgusted they must have been during the course of the 60's and 70's when dissent turned into repudiation of all that had been purchasBrilliant exposition of the intellectual history of the West from Leonardo to Hegel. Bronowski later did "The Ascent of Man" on PBS. Bronowski and Mazlish do a masterful job tracing the development of Western thought. Their conclusions on individualism and freedom are spot on. The book was published in 1962. They praise dissent as the highest form of freedom. How disgusted they must have been during the course of the 60's and 70's when dissent turned into repudiation of all that had been purchased with so much blood and treasure. This kind of volume is now reviled as the story of "dead white men". We now face an enemy in the Moslem world who would destroy all of that work. If our survival is achieved it will be because of the ideas of these "dead white men" and the civilization they and others like them created....more

Excellent broad and deep scholarly but readable introduction to western intellectual history. I learned more (much much more) from this book than my freshman western philosophy 1 and 2 put together. And it's only $10.

This is a very good overview meant for a general readership. It is indeed very readable. The authors' main focus is on political philosophy and the scientific revolution rather than with abstract philosophy (although some is in there). The book is very much of its time, with its conclusion about the importance of dissent--published in 1960, I wonder how the authors would revise it now. Don't expect anything new if you've read a lot of philosophy and intellectual history but if you haven't read aThis is a very good overview meant for a general readership. It is indeed very readable. The authors' main focus is on political philosophy and the scientific revolution rather than with abstract philosophy (although some is in there). The book is very much of its time, with its conclusion about the importance of dissent--published in 1960, I wonder how the authors would revise it now. Don't expect anything new if you've read a lot of philosophy and intellectual history but if you haven't read any philosophy since college or you just want a refresher, this is a good one....more

Jacob Bronowski was a British mathematician and biologist of Polish-Jewish origin. He is best remembered as the presenter and writer of the 1973 BBC television documentary series, The Ascent of Man.

In 1950, Bronowski was given the Taung child's fossilized skull and asked to try, using his statistical skills, to combine a measure of the size of the skull's teeth with their shape in order to discrimJacob Bronowski was a British mathematician and biologist of Polish-Jewish origin. He is best remembered as the presenter and writer of the 1973 BBC television documentary series, The Ascent of Man.

In 1950, Bronowski was given the Taung child's fossilized skull and asked to try, using his statistical skills, to combine a measure of the size of the skull's teeth with their shape in order to discriminate them from the teeth of apes. Work on this turned his interests towards the human biology of humanity's intellectual products.

In 1967 Bronowski delivered the six Silliman Memorial Lectures at Yale University and chose as his subject the role of imagination and symbolic language in the progress of scientific knowledge. Transcripts of the lectures were published posthumously in 1978 as The Origins of Knowledge and Imagination and remain in print.

He first became familiar to the British public through appearances on the BBC television version of The Brains Trust in the late 1950s. His ability to answer questions on many varied subjects led to an offhand reference in an episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus where one character states that "He knows everything." However Bronowski is best remembered for his thirteen part series The Ascent of Man (1973), a documentary about the history of human beings through scientific endeavour. This project was intended to parallel art historian Kenneth Clark's earlier "personal view" series Civilisation (1969) which had covered cultural history.

During the making of The Ascent of Man, Bronowski was interviewed by the popular British chat show host Michael Parkinson. Parkinson later recounted that Bronowski's description of a visit to Auschwitz—Bronowski had lost many family members during the Nazi era—was one of Parkinson's most memorable interviews.

Jacob Bronowski married Rita Coblentz in 1941. The couple had four children, all daughters, the eldest being the British academic Lisa Jardine and another being the filmmaker Judith Bronowski. He died in 1974 of a heart attack in East Hampton, New York a year after The Ascent of Man was completed, and was buried in the western side of London's Highgate Cemetery, near the entrance....more